Category: Interviews

#ScriptFlip featuring Author Lisa Suzanne

7/14/2015

Neon nails and Vintage by Lisa Suzanne #currentobsessions

I will admit, what first drew me to this next series was the covers. THEY'RE GORGEOUS, and thankfully, they perfectly fit the words in these books. If you liked my Night Fever Serial, I think you should pick up Vintage. Not that the series have a ton in common, but the dark undertone, strong female lead and element of suspense give them a similar feel. This isn't necessarily a feel-good romance, although the theme of love is strong throughout. It's got some grit, and the sensuality is kiiinda off the charts.

From my review: "Roxy and Parker fall for each other fast, but the suspense that threads the story is a slow-build that had me flipping pages like crazy to find out how it would all come together."

JH: I'm beyond thrilled to welcome author Lisa Suzanne to the blog today & to have the chance to ask her some questions about her latest series, Vintage (Vols. 1 & 2). Lisa, thanks for indulging me! Have you always written fiction, or did something in particular spur you to write and publish your first series, the He Feels Trilogy?

Lisa: I’ve always written fiction—at least back to high school. I think the first book in the He Feels Trilogy goes back probably fifteen or so years. It wasn’t meant to be a trilogy, but after I published the first book, I had to explore what happened to Travis! And so the series was born.

JH: In your other life, you’re a high school English teacher. What’s your favorite book to discuss with your classes? When kids enter your classroom, what hashtag pops into their head?

Lisa: My top favorite is probably The Great Gatsby, but I also love teaching Into the Wild! As for a hashtag, probably something like #figureitout or #sheisobsessedwithherdog.

JH: Ha! Roxy Price is a complex, layered character. Which of her qualities do you admire most?

Lisa: I love her ability to bounce back. She’s been through a lot, but she’s tough even when she doesn’t want to be. I also love how grounded she is. She could easily get caught up in the world around her, but she remains true to herself.

JH: Completely agree—grounded is a great way to describe Roxy. During both books, I felt like I was right there on tour with Black Shadow. What kind of research went into creating that experience for the reader?

Lisa: I’ve always loved music and attending concerts. I’ve been lucky enough to get front row seats and meet & greet opportunities with some amazing artists. But the one piece of research that stands out the most happened last summer. I scored VIP passes to the Uproar Festival in Tucson from a new member of the band Seether. He and my brother played in a band together in high school, and he not only took us backstage, but he took us on his tour bus. To see a huge tour like that from behind the scenes was an amazing experience that I knew would end up in a book.

JH: Aside from the explanation in the books, any personal significance to the names Roxanna Cecilia “Jimi” Price and Parker James?

Lisa: There really isn’t! For some reason, Roxy never felt like a Roxanna to me, but when I tried to change her name, I couldn’t. It’s who she is. But just like she doesn’t like her name, the nicknames fit her a little better. I liked the name CC because my favorite show is New Girl (and Jess’s best friend is CeCe). (JH: I love New Girl too! My goal in life is to marry a man named Nick so we can be Nick & Jess. Ha!) As for Parker… I couldn’t figure out his name. I have a slight obsession for Parker Hurley, so I stuck the name “Parker” in there as a placeholder, and it just fit.

JH: Ahh. Parker... Hurley... I'm envisioning him with black hair, maybe a tiger tattoo, and... uh, where were we? Oh, yes. You and I share a fantastically-talented cover designer (Louisa of LM Creations), and she hit the nail on the head with Vintage. Did you know right off the bat what you wanted on the cover?

Lisa: Louisa is AMAZING! I love her!!! I really didn’t know what I wanted on the cover. I knew I wanted something sexy and different, and when she sent me that mock-up, it was the most perfect representation I could have possibly imagined. It just fit the characters and the whole feel of the book to perfection.

JH: Rock music is front and center in these books. Favorite rock artist or album?

Lisa: I love all different kinds of music. My favorite bands are Matchbox Twenty, Maroon 5, and Imagine Dragons, which are all on the more mellow side of rock. I also love bands like Metallica and Mötley Crüe, classic bands that have lasted through the years.

JH: Did you write the lyrics for Vintage and what was your process with that?

Lisa: I did write the lyrics. I think because I’m such a music junkie, I’ve studied lyrics and I try to write it like a poem. I try to sing it in my head a certain way to see if it would work as a song. If I like how it sounds in my head, I hope someone else will, too.

JH: That's amazing. Lyrics aren't easy, I'm sure. What’s the scoop on your current work in progress?

Lisa: I’m working on a romantic comedy that is set to release August 27! Not Just another Romance Novel is about Piper, a woman working toward her master’s degree in Psychology. She comes up with a project where she combines her love for romance novels with her passion for psychology. Her social experiment is to date all of the stereotypes in the books to find out which one will lead her to her happy ending. My beta readers are just starting to get back to me with feedback, and so far I’m hearing awesome things! I can’t wait to share this one!

JH: That sounds like fun—to write & to read! Thanks so much for taking the time to do this interview and for bringing us Vintage. The series was just what I was looking for.

Guys, if you haven't yet, pick up copies of the completed series, Vintage (Vol. 1) and Vintage (Vol. 2) now. You can also stay in the know about Lisa Suzanne's upcoming releases by signing up for her mailing list. Be a good groupie and stalk her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & Pinterest.

If you enjoyed the interview, be sure to sign up for my mailing list to see more. If this is your first time visiting my page, welcome! You can find my books on Amazon or check out my Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & Pinterest.

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#ScriptFlip with Author R.S. Grey

7/13/2015

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With a week at the beach ahead of me, I needed a light-hearted romcom for my sunbathing, and I knew exactly where to find it: author R.S. Grey. Lucky for me, she has a new release that turned out to be everything I was hoping for & more. I laughed. I swooned. I almost lost my Kindle to an aggressive wave. The Allure of Julian Lefray delivers on its promise of comedy and romance, plus it incorporates pop culture, fashion and the ever-so-hot blogosphere. Jo's story is every girl's Cinderella fantasy, except in The Allure of Julian Lefray, the ball is New York Fashion Week and the glass slipper is a vintage Chanel leopard-print flat.

From my review: "It’s clear from the start that Julian Lefray has as much heart as he does wit, and matched with sharp, humorous Jo, the pair keeps readers entertained from page to page."

I had to find out more, so I reached out to R.S. Grey, and she generously took time out of her busy, wedding-planning, book-writing schedule to answer some questions for me...

JH: FANGIRLING. I mean... welcome, R.S. Grey! First question: have you always written fiction, or did something in particular spur you to write and publish your first book, Behind His Lens?

R.S.: Writing wasn’t a part of my life until a few years ago. I was always an avid reader, especially in my teen years. It wouldn’t be out of the ordinary for me to take two to three trips to B&N a week back then. My love for reading naturally morphed into a dream of writing my own novel one day. I had a good friend who convinced me to give it a shot and the rest is history!

JH: In The Allure of Julian Lefray, Jo is an in-the-know fashion blogger. Is fashion a passion of yours or did you have to do a lot of research?

R.S.: My guilty pleasure is to follow fashion bloggers on Instagram. My feed is littered with women who are living such glamorous lives (or at least it looks like it!). They served as the inspiration behind Jo.

JH: I love the title. Was it a lightning bolt of genius, or were there other contenders?

R.S.: The title took a little while to come up with. The title was originally The Danger of Julian Lefray, but I later changed it as I realized that there was nothing inherently dangerous about him, haha!

JH: Actually, the chiseled cheekbones/tuxedo combo kills more women a year than genetically-modified dinosaurs. True story, look it up. You design your own covers. Jo scrimps & saves by doing graphics & development for her up-and-coming blog, What Jo Wore. Is there a little of yourself in Josephine, and if so, in what ways?

R.S.: ABSOLUTELY. Before I wrote full time, I worked for a woman who owned a graphic design company. I’d help her with design in the mornings and then nanny for her in the afternoon. It was a fun set-up, but it was definitely a time in my life where I knew I was striving for more.

JH: Jo and Julian are stylish, attractive and kinda goofy. When they enter a room together, what’s their hashtag?

R.S.: HAH! This is a hilarious question. #Blessed <- but they would use it ironically, for sure.

JH: Jo has an unfortunate accident involving a bumpy car ride, too many beers and a face-to-face with Julian’s lap (not the good kind). Any embarrassing moments of your own involving a guy you were dating or interested in?

R.S.: There’s no moment that pops out, but I will say that I am someone who moves first and thinks second, so I’m always tripping over things. It’s seemingly charming, but I end up with a perpetual line of bruises on my shins because of it!

JH: What nail polish color is Jo wearing this summer?

R.S.: Rock the Boat by Essie.

JH: Why are you so funny?

R.S.: HAHA. I’ll be honest, I still am not 100% convinced that I am. However, I do have a secret weapon: Lance. He’s the funniest person I know and he helps me fine tune my manuscripts so that they’re as funny as possible. Many of my favorite lines were actually written by Lance!

JH: I just saw that you’re working on Dean Harper’s story (#yay) (#stalker). Any updates you can spare to hold us over until it’s ready?

R.S.: Yes! His story is in the works. I’ve already begun writing it and I can say that it will be released later this year. I’m hesitant to give an exact date since I’m getting married in October. If I’m a wizard, it could be released before then, but most likely it will release sometime after that!

So hot right now.

JH: Guys, you heard it here first. R.S. Grey is *probably* a wizard. A huge THANK YOU and CONGRATULATIONS to the bride-to-be for indulging my niggling questions, and I can't wait to hop on the Dean train later this year!

If you haven't yet, get your copy of The Allure of Julian Lefray now. Follow her Amazon page so you don't miss any new releases, and be a good groupie—stalk her on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram.

If you enjoyed the interview, be sure to sign up for my mailing list to see more. If this is your first time visiting my page, welcome! You can find my books on Amazon or check out my Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & Pinterest.

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#ScriptFlip featuring Author Carter Ashby

7/12/2015

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Cold Corona + a good book = perfect vacation day.

I recently went on an indie reading binge, and one of the books I absolutely devoured was Carter Ashby's The Closer You Get. As a personal friend of Carter's, I immediately had to pick her brain once I shut off my Kindle. She kindly agreed to answer a few burning questions for me about the new release, her writing process and—yes!—there's more Fidelity on the horizon!

From my review of The Closer You Get:
"Rye and Cash Holcomb are the stuff dreams are made of."
"Oh, and did I mention this book is also FUNNY. AS. HELL. I laughed out loud and a lot."

JH: Carter, thanks so much for stopping by the blog today for #ScriptFlip. I absolutely loved The Closer You Get. Have you always written fiction, or did something in particular spur you to write and publish your first book, Not A Chance?

Carter: I’ve always written fiction, but I considered it a guilty pleasure. I’d intended to pursue other avenues in the book industry, but then I read my first romance novel (Maybe This Time by Jennifer Crusie), and it was like a heavenly light burst forth and illuminated the path to my future. Yes. You heard me right. I’m saying that God wants me to write smut. I ask frequently, “Are you sure God?” So far, he seems pretty certain.

JH: Tell us a little about Rye and Cash Holcomb from The Closer You Get. Were the brothers based on anyone in particular?

Carter: I’m sure they’re composites of people and ideas I’ve encountered throughout my life, but I didn’t have anyone specific in mind. To be honest, I have never known where my characters germinate from. Rye and Cash were born in my mind together, though. They were brothers from the very beginning.

JH: Any fun facts you can share about The Closer You Get?

Carter:

It’s actually the sixth book in the series in terms of chronology. It just happens to be the first one I finished. Is that weird?
This and all the books in the Fidelity series are titled after country songs.
Cash’s traumatic background is based on real events from my hometown back when I was in high school (not exactly a “fun” fact).
TCYG was rejected by several literary agents who believed the strong male/male side story wouldn’t be marketable in contemporary romance.

JH: Cora has a habit of playing herself down, especially with her gorgeous, Amazon-like sisters. Aside from her peek-a-boo dimples, what specifically do you think Rye fell for first (or the hardest)?

Carter: I think he liked when she flipped him off in the restaurant before they go to the bar. She showed some attitude and it caught his attention. She also rejected him, which offered him a challenge. So from that point on, I think he was falling in love with her subliminally. He just had to dig his way out of his own issues before he could really see her and truly appreciate her beauty.

JH: Is there a song you associate with writing The Closer You Get?

Carter: Besides the title song by Alabama, my favorite one on the playlist I made is All Of Me by John Legend. (Jessica: I have John Legend on my Cityscape playlist too!)

JH: In your latest release, you explore two different relationships—Rye and Cora, and Cash and Adam. Since it was your first dip into M/M, were you worried about readers’ response to that?

Carter: I wasn’t worried. I had two goals. One was to write the story of these two brothers, one of whom was gay.

And then because he was gay, my second goal was to make sure he wasn’t treated as a “token” gay character or as a convenient plot device for Rye. I want to buck those trends. (Jessica: Hear, hear!) We’re constantly reading/hearing/saying the mantra, “Love is love.” That’s what I wanted for Cash. For his romance to be romance. I believe gay romance belongs shelved with the mainstream romance. I’m not saying everyone has to like it. We all have preferences. But to be told by our friends, our media, even our Supreme Court that “love is love,” and then to walk into the bookstore and find out that “love is love, but gay love is inherently erotic and kinky and therefore located in that little section over there”…that’s just ridiculous to me.

JH: Often, your heroes are the epitome of masculine, from Travis the mechanic (Not A Chance) to Wyatt the stoic widower (Without You Here) to Rye & Cash, the beer-guzzling, pool-shooting, construction-working duo (The Closer You Get). Do you think you’ll ever write the popular billionaire businessman or are you devoted to rough-and-tumble countrymen?

Carter: I’m not sure why, as many billionaire romances as I’ve read and loved, I haven’t found inspiration to write one. I possibly feel unqualified to do it? I’m not sure, I just know it’s not a deliberate choice. I do have a personal preference for the rough-and-tumble, though. Cary Grant is a dream, don’t get me wrong, but if you want a thorough spanking, John Wayne’s your man.

JH: Do you have any tips or tricks that get you through dreaded writer’s block?

Carter: I’m the absolute last person who should answer this question. I’m a sloppy, undisciplined writer. When I get blocked on a project I either start a new project or lie around the house in a depressive state checking my temperature trying to find some physiological reason for my malaise. So no. I don’t have any tips.

JH: Can you share anything about what you’re working on now? (Any chance we’ll get more of Franny, Sully, Lyssa and the rest of Fidelity?)

Carter: Sully has caused me some problems. But I am pleased to say that I finally have him figured out and am going strong on his story. I hope to announce a release date in the next month. The title is Play It Again and it does directly follow The Closer You Get. Sully’s been keeping a very big secret for a very long time and, Franny is determined to uncover it. I’m so excited about this one!

JH: You and me both! Thanks for stopping by, Carter.

Want to pick up a copy of The Closer You Get? Find it on Amazon here. Visit Carter's website for more info & to sign up for her mailing list. Be a good groupie & stalk her on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter & Instagram.

If you enjoyed the interview, be sure to sign up for my mailing list to see the next one. Find me on Amazon or check out my Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & Pinterest.

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interview with a writer

6/14/2013

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If you need a Cityscape fix while you wait for book three, see below. Some of my favorite blogs have interviewed me this month about my inspiration for the series (including David Dylan), why I chose to write about adultery and even what you can expect from the third book in The Cityscape Series. They are all lovely ladies, and I enjoyed chatting with each of them!

ILoveRomanticFiction - Author Interview
Foxylutely - Spotlight On...
A Love Affair with Books - Seven & Seven Questions

You can also "Like" my Facebook author page to see interviews, reviews and updates for the series.

The ladies have also reviewed either Come Undone, Come Alive or both! So if you want even more, explore their blogs a bit.

xoxo,
Jessica

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#ScriptFlip featuring Author Lisa Suzanne

#ScriptFlip with Author R.S. Grey

#ScriptFlip featuring Author Carter Ashby

interview with a writer

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